Summon
by Yukann
Summary: Cloud has been in the lifestream for decades. It was time to set things in motion. Time-Travel, AU.
1. Chapter 1

FFVII:

Summon Summary: Cloud had been stuck in the lifestream for decades. It was time to set things in motion.

Disclaimer: I don't own FFVII. This applies to all my chapters.

#REPOST: Something went wrong with the formatting and resulted in everything being shoved together. I've fixed it.

C01:

Green. Everything was green. Well, everything except the girl that kept visiting him with sorrowful, greenagain eyes. Clad in a pink, body-hugging dress, almond-shaped eyes and pink lips, she was a beauty in this neverending green wasteland.

Sometimes, the girl would come together with a black-haired male, both staring at him with so much nostalgia, he almost wanted to reach out and talk to them, an urge he hadn't felt in a long time. He couldn't, however, as the lifestream didn't want him to move yet. It wanted to keep him here until he was ready. Until he could be summoned again. And Cloud fell back into the abyss once more.

-0-

Sephiroth calmly sliced the monster in front of him in two, blood spraying everywhere. Monsters have been popping up everywhere and Shinra had no choice but to deploy some SOLDIERs to get rid of them before they become even worse. Sephiroth hadn't wanted to go on this mission but it beat doing paperwork at his office; the lesser of the two evils.

The feline monster leapt from behind, claws out to shred him to pieces but the general just nonchalantly sliced it in half. He was about to walk away when a light tinkling sound could be heard, and something rolled against his leg.

The general looked down and a glint of red caught his eye. He picked it up, curious, and widened his eyes in surprise.

A summon Materia, almost never dropped by something as common as a Coeurl, maybe never. With a slight smirk, he continued towards Midgar, intent on shoving it in Genesis' face -subtly, mind you- about this new find. Maybe Sephiroth could finally beat the redhead at his own game!

-0-

A slight tugging at his power and Cloud slowly blinked his eyes open. The sensation stopped and Cloud fell back down, intent on sleeping the years away.

-0-

Sephiroth frowned. He could've sworn that he'd put enough MP for at least Bahamut. An annoyed click of a tongue sounded behind him and Sephiroth's eyebrow twitched. Genesis, slouched against the walls of the VR room smirked.

"Can't even activate a simple Materia? Maybe the Great General Sephiroth is getting sloppy."

Sephiroth, impassive as ever, simply rose an eyebrow before passing over the Materia. "How about you give it a try, O Mighty Materia User." Sephiroth shot back, sarcasm lacing every word. Genesis' eyebrows shot up in surprise. Sephiroth must've been very frustrated to even begin to crack a joke.

The redhead, with a slight smirk, reached for the red marble and equipped it to his bracer. "This is how a Materia master does it," he said arrogantly, a hand already stretched out, ready to summon. At first, nothing happened and Genesis furrowed his eyebrows. Opening his mouth to offer a scathing remark about 'apparently, there aren't any masters here' when the ground shook.

Sephiroth stumbled, hands shooting out in an attempt to balance himself.

'What could've done that? The summon?' No sooner had he thought that when, in a bright flash of light, a humanoid figure appeared.

-0-

The tugging sensation returned. Cloud resisted. He didn't want to wake up. But it continued, constantly tugging him and getting stronger. He couldn't resist anymore and opened his eyes, sitting up. With a sleepy frown, rubbing his eyes, Cloud got up and followed the feeling.

Then, he disappeared from the green world. The brunette stood off to the side, staring sorrowfully at the blond, unnoticed.

-0-

The light died down and Sephiroth got a good look at what had appeared. Instead of something really powerful, like a dragon or something, an unassuming blond man stood in its place. A totally black attire that could get him labeled as a goth, a large -as huge as Angeal's- sword lay on his back, supported by several leather harnesses.

There wasn't anything remarkable about the man and Sephiroth couldn't help but assume that he had somehow snuck into the room while the light blinded both him and Genesis. Maybe the summon hadn't worked and the light had been the blond's doing? While he mused, Genesis stood gaping at the blond man. As he was standing closer, Genesis could feel the power rolling off the blond man in waves, tightly controlled, as if he would kill everyone if he were to let go.

It was about that time when the summon spoke, "YOU!"

The blond's eyes blazed with fury, practically spitting fire as he pointed the huge buster blade - When did he unsheathe it? - at Sephiroth. Said man, for the life of him, couldn't give a reason for the hostility. He just raised an eyebrow calmly. _What?_

With almost no warning, the blond was right in front of him, swinging his blade with deadly precision, aiming right for his neck. Sephiroth barely had time to lift his sword to block; his leg stepped back to accommodate Cloud's strength.

Sephiroth's blood boiled. He had barely seen the man move. Someone who could challenge him?

The blazing blue eyes of the summon met his own and -

Fire flashed in between the two. Genesis stood at the sidelines, Materia equipped and ready for another usage. His eyes glittered angrily and he demanded, "Stand down!"

Either the blond didn't get the hint - although how he could not get the hint with such obvious words would've been a mystery - or he was stupid. There was no bravery here. Challenging a first class was basically suicidal. Challenging one of the legendary trinity? It was worse.

The blond, - he had loosened his hold on the sword - grimaced, glanced between the two as if contemplating whether to continue anyway, before backing down. Sephiroth's eyes narrowed. Did the man just think about challenging two Firsts at the same time?

Sephiroth tightened his grip on Masamune, coiled and ready to fight. The blond glared at the general, and they both knew that the fight hasn't ended. In a second, the stranger tensed and leapt at Sephiroth again, somehow even faster then before, faster then even_ him_. Genesis didn't even have time to blink before swords once again clashed together with a loud clang.

Another second later and Genesis's sword was flashing towards the blond's unprotected back. To both their surprise, the man released a smaller sword from the buster blade and blocked the rapier, one-handed and never once looking back.

The door to the training room suddenly slid open with a hiss and then a voice rang out, "Sephiroth, Genesis, I want you - What is going on!"

Angeal.

-0-

New story again. the plot bunnies multiply like crazy. I have a ton of ideas that are bouncing around my head but, I'm finding it hard to write down. I state once again that updates are sporadic, I write when inspiration hits. Sorry for mistakes, none of my works are beta-d 'cause I don't have a fixed schedule and I'm not really a people's person. Haha~~ ^^''


	2. Chapter 2

Disclaimer: I do not own. This will apply to all my chapters from now on.

Summon: C02

Angeal stood at the door, the light shining from behind him shadowing his face.

The sudden movement out of the corner of his eye alerted him to the fact that the blond had just leaped backwards; Genesis was knocked out of the way, a wary eye trained on the black-haired male. Sephiroth didn't relax his guard, his eyes darting back and forth between Angeal and the stranger.

Suddenly, nary a warning, the man disappeared, the only evidence he had been there were the still panting silver-head and red-head.

"I said, what's going on." Angeal narrowed his eyes and growled.

Sephiroth noticed that his mana finally started to replenish; he hadn't even known it had been depleted.

While Genesis hastened to explain to Angeal, the general pondered on this. Wasn't the blond a summon? Were the limitations forced on normal summons the same for him? Interesting.

-0-

Cloud didn't know what happened, one moment, he was battling Sephiroth, the next, he was surrounded by green. Again. He was sick and tired of seeing green.

The brunette was there now, sitting down in the center of the green abyss and calmly staring straight at him. Her eyes were green too. The girl have a sad sigh and slowly stood up until her eyes reached his nose. She was familiar, Cloud knew, in between the bits and pieces of his broken memory he could remember.

"Cloud. It's been so long." She breathed out, "I'm Aerith."

A strangled gasp escaped the blond as image after image assaulted his eyes. He took a stumbling step back and would've fallen if not for the hard chest behind him; supporting his weight. Cloud glanced back and would've cried on the spot if he hadn't used up all his years oh so very long ago.

"Zack!" The bubble of pure reliefhappinessguiltsorrow expanded to encompass his heart and Cloud found he couldn't say anything past that one word. The familiar grin tossed towards him was answer enough._ I know. _

Hands snaked around his waist in a hug and Cloud felt another pair of dainty hands circle his chest; he was sandwiched between them.

The warmth flooded through his body relaxed him enough to almost forget about his recent encounter. Almost. With a jolt, Cloud suddenly remembered what had just happened and quickly extricated himself from his friends.

"What happened to me?" He questioned, a determined I-won't-stop-till-I-get-my-answers look thrown at the both of them. They had the sense to at least look sheepish - Zack with one hand scratching the back of his head and Aerith faintly blushing.

"We thought it was for the best." The brunette took the initiative to say, mind formulating her argument. She know Cloud wouldn't like this situation one bit; he'd earned his rest when he killed Sephiroth for the third time, something the blond had been looking forward to. No more saving the world, no more lives on the line and he could just kick back and relax without the threat of the apocalypse hanging over his head.

"So what did you do to me? Why am I here and in this time period?" Contrary to popular belief coughcoughBarretcoughcough, Cloud did actually have a brain thankyouverymuch, and actually used it to deduce that yes, Angeal had most definitely already died before Cloud met Tifa at the train station and Genesis would not touch ShinRa with a ten foot pole unless it had something destructive at the end of it.

Aerith gave him a glance that was both sorrowful and hopeful all at once. Cloud dreaded to know what they had done.

"Congrats Cloud! You're now a Summon!" That, quite obviously, wasn't Aerith, but Zack, the knucklehead who just dropped the bombshell. Couldn't he have been more subtle? Aerith gave a none too subtle jab at Zack's waist, face set in slight irritation.

"What he means to say is," Aerith continues blithely, completely ignoring the spluttering Zack behind her, "that because you've been depressed the past few years, we decided to let you come back in time. However, since bringing you back physically would create and paradox and destroy Gaia, and we don't think you'd want to lose you current form, we decided to make you into a summon since this dimension is out of time."

A smile, then Aerith patted his shoulder. "Make full use of this opportunity Cloud." She says, and then, her body starts to turn transparent before disappearing all together. Zack's too. An almost inaudible _goodbye_ could be heard on the non-existent wind.

Cloud tried desperately to pull them back. "WAIT! I still have a lot more questions!"

They don't return.

-0-

Sephiroth rolled the red marble around his fingers contemplating. Should he summon that man again? He wanted it, desperately wanted it, a rival that even the mighty Sephiroth couldn't defeat. Someone who could stand on par with him and make his blood boil with anticipation.

The blond had done that and more. Another glance at the materia and Sephiroth was out the door, hurrying towards the VR room. The last time he'd been here, Genesis and he had to explain, in excruciating detail, what happened and why Sephiroth of all people actually had a cut on his cheek. The silver-haired man hadn't noticed until Genesis pointed and that little fact had made his blood boil even hotter.

Sephiroth finally reached the his destination and was just about to go in and train when red was caught at the edge of his vision. Genesis swept into view. A knowing glance and a slight gesture of the redhead's head and they both went into the room.

Standing in the middle, Sephiroth managed to equip one mastered MP plus so that it'd be quite awhile before the blond man would disappear.

Anticipation fraught the air, thick enough to be sliced through with a sword. Genesis stood stock still at the side, eyes riveted on the ball outstretched on Sephiroth's palm.

It began to glow, building up to a blinding red, so bright it hurt the eyes; even brighter than the last time.

And then, there he was, in all his blond and black glory, a hand on his sword, already halfway falling into an attack stance. Sephiroth smirked and got ready. This time, he would not be taken off guard. This time, he would win.

And without further ado, the general pounced. 


	3. Chapter 3

Disclaimer: I don't own FFVII.

Summon C03:

To be fair, Cloud should've expected it when the familiar tug on his navel was felt. But, well, he was still so confused by Aerith's cryptic messages that he just _didn't pay attention._ And that was the first mistake Cloud had learned from when he'd faced Sephiroth in the past (future?).

So when the glint of silver that was Masamune descended towards him, he didn't have time to react; basically, he got hurt, bad. A red line formed from his left shoulder to his hip, with said arm suddenly almost fully disconnected from his body. Blue eyes widened, as did green.

"What-"

Cloud dropped to his knees with a grunt of pain, – it was a miracle that he didn't scream. Then again, it might have to do with being stabbed multiple times by the man in front of him, and _surviving_ - his arm automatically rising to clasp his shoulder as the sound of frantic footsteps quickened in his direction.

"Get out of the way, Sephiroth!" The auburn-haired man, whom Cloud vaguely recognised to be Genesis, shoved the still general to the side. The green material – Full Cure – was already in the palm of the skilled user. Genesis wasted no time chanting the spell and Cloud sighed in relief when he felt skin knit back together.

Rotating his shoulder, Cloud checked to see if he had all his motor functions. Then, he stood up and glanced in Sephiroth's direction, over Genesis's head. A raised silver brow was all he got before the general gripped the summon material and Cloud was gone.

A puzzled look was sent to his red-haired friend.

"Why did he not fight back?"

Eyebrows furrowed, Sephiroth was confused and worried. He had finally found a sparring partner and he didn't want to lose him so early.

Genesis gave a shrug, a curious eye on the place the blond had once stood. "I haven't got a clue. Maybe he came to a great life-changing epiphany or something like that."

Unbeknownst to them, Cloud was doing just that.

-0-

Sephiroth was younger. Surprisingly, that was the thought that was stuck in his head. He could _change the past._

-0-

"Really," Aerith huffed from her place in the LifeStream, "must he be so clueless?"

Zack could only snort in amusement

-0-

Another sigh and Genesis couldn't take it anymore.

"Would you stop that? It's getting on my nerves and it's usually the other way around!" He shouted, the annoyance finally building up and exploding in the messy fashion that Angeal would've predicted.

Sephiroth had exhibited more humane behaviour in the past few days than he did the past _year._ It says a lot about the effect the blond summon had on the silver-haired man.

The door to Sephiroth's apartment – where they had been lounging in to avoid the paperwork which had no doubt piled up from their impromptu spar – opened to reveal their other friend as well as his student nicknamed 'Puppy'.

Boundless enthusiasm, black hair, blue eyes and the metaphorical dog traits that were attached to said person; puppy was the apt description for Zack Fair.

The youth and his mentor stepped through the door as soon as the newly-inducted second class opened his mouth.

"Hey Seph, Genesis! How y'all doing? I finally got to Second class! Am I great or what?"

Sephiroth tuned the boy out as he rambled on about his achievements. Angeal listened with an indulgent smile and Genesis just lounged on the sofa, any pretence of listening was never present.

A normal day in the life of these people, considering the strange start that happened that morning.

-0-

"I can change the past." _I can save you._

Zack nodded alongside the blond.

"Don't let me die a second time." _I know you will._

"Is this… Is this real?"

The question was so hesitant, so unlike the usual Cloud. Aerith looked on sadly her two favourite boys were comforting each other. The truth of his circumstance hasn't really sunk in yet, but it will, soon.

-0-

Cloud was battling an inner turmoil. Should he change the past (Present? This was going to get confusing soon.)? If he did, then so many people wouldn't have died.

AngealZackAerithMother… Sephiroth…

It was grudgingly given, this forgiveness, but Aerith had sat him down and explained everything to him just now and while he still hated Sephiroth for taking all he'd known away, he couldn't help but sympathise with the already broken man. (Could he still be fixed?)

A chance. This was the gift of a lifetime; he _had_ to make use of it! But if he did change the timeline, what would happen to the people he'd known? He wanted, no _needed_, to have his friends back, to revel in the safety their presences brought.

Aerith and Zack were wrong. He had been content. He had family, friends, a life he was getting back into fixing; he had so much to live for and his two friends had just ripped him away from everything he'd known.

A small, miniscule part of him couldn't help but resent them a bit.

-0-

"I want to talk with him."

This declaration brought many incredulous looks to be directed at him. A silver eyebrow rose.

"Is there a problem?"

Genesis gave him a smirk. "No, I want to watch you get beaten. The man came _very_ close to defeating you the other day. If it weren't for Angeal and I butting in, I'd say he'd have your ass wiped in five minutes."

Angeal tried to step in as he shushed his puppy's question of "Who are you guys talking about?" with an "I'll explain later."

"I don't think this is a wise idea Sephiroth. This unknown man is a danger to all of us. I feel that he must be properly contained before we attempt to talk to him."

Sephiroth nodded. "Of course, that was exactly what I was thinking."

A contemplative look settled on the general's face.

"Let's split the job. Genesis, get the necessary material, Angeal, get some boards to barricade the doors and viewing room of the VR room. Zack… And I will be there to talk to our lovely prisoner."

The dark smirk that adorned his face was just short od bloodthirsty.

"We will meet at the VR room in half an hour. Don't be late."

They all shuffled out of the room, and even Zack didn't say anything about his not-role. It seemed that they could sense the underlying impatience that threatened to surface as rage if Sephiroth deemed that they were obstructing his goals. After all, he didn't make it o general just by being a good fighter. Sephiroth knew what he wanted and how to get it. No one was going to stand in his way.

-0-

The tugging at his stomach came again. Cloud glanced back at his two friends, a half-smile on his face before he was forcefully transported. He couldn't resist the pull yet, but soon.

A/N: Sorry for the delay. I usually try to update both stories together but Strange was done like ages ago so I updated that first. I only got this done like today so yea. Haha~~ ^^ Have a nice day~


	4. Chapter 4

Disclaimer: I don't own.

A/N: Yeah, I just realised that in SOLDIER, there weren't any military rankings. Therefore, Sephiroth is just a First, along with Genesis and Angeal. Currently, there are only 3 Firsts, that's why the 'Holy Trinity' as named by fans are so famous and kinda worshipped. Plus, Sephiroth is the spokesperson for SOLDIER so yeah.

Summon C04:

Why did the universe hate him? Sephiroth lamented, a rare occurrence, as the silver-haired man was not prone to bouts of self-pity, but there was a problem. Remember his resolution to talk to the blond just an hour ago? Well, that wasn't possible anymore. Apparently, AVALANCHE decided that this was the best time to attack and invade Shinra Company.

And, surprisingly, they got quite deep into the building, all the way to the fiftieth floor, before the alarms had started blaring. Sephiroth cursed the incompetence of the security. Why didn't the Turks catch them anyway? Were they really _that_ good?

Genesis had gone to the science division, and while the redhead had a healthy aversion to the scientists there, – especially Hollander – he couldn't disobey – actually he could but he didn't want to get a lecture after this whole fiasco was over – an order from the director and so had separated from their group – Angeal, Zack and himself were the other three.

Angeal, on the other hand, had taken along Zack and headed for the SOLDIER floor, intent on making sure that his comrades were okay; the man always had much more compassion for his men then Sephiroth.

So, completely alone, Sephiroth made his way towards the commotion – the clanging of blades and gunshot sounds were quite difficult to hide after all – , intent on getting rid of the distraction and proceeding with his plans; summon the blond and question him.

As it was, the panicked mass of SOLDIERs, cadets, and the typical clerk found in an office building were a huge block in the silver-haired man's plans. Obstructions, that's what they were, and Sephiroth had to resist the urge to cut them all down with Masamune and clear a path.

"Sephiroth, sir!" a young SOLDIER third class saluted, posture remaining stock still even as Sephiroth could tell that he wanted to run away from whatever that was chasing them.

"Report." Sephiroth commanded, impatience exuding from him.

The young man stammered, "T-t-the leader of AVALANCHE is here sir! And Tseng requests that you immediately back him up, sir!"

Sephiroth mused over the information quietly, ignoring the shivering mess of a man in front of him. He was in no hurry – the Turks could take care of themselves – but _Tseng_ had requested help from _him_. That was very unusual.

The Wutainese was quite proud of his fighting skills and would never ask for help if he didn't need one – and sometimes even when he did. The leader must be quite formidable – probably on the level of a First – if Tseng was having trouble with her.

As it was, Sephiroth hurried his steps, almost running – almost because he _never_ runs – towards battle.

As soon as he reached, he could see that although Tseng clearly had the upper hand, the leader had several goons around, waiting to assist her, except one, who was working on a computer. This had Sephiroth puzzled. Why would they hack into a computer on the fiftieth floor? There wasn't anything important enough to steal from there.

Nonetheless, they were still the enemy, and the silver-haired man wasted no time in jumping – more like stepping gracefully – into the fray. A shivering goon had bravely – or stupidly – stood in front of his hacking comrade, becoming a shield for the man.

With a single eyebrow raised, Sephiroth nonchalant cut the man down. However, two men came charging towards him, no doubt angered by the death of their comrade.

_Hmph! Useless cretins._

Another swing of Masamune and those two were also down, blood pooling onto the floor. Out of the corner of his eyes, Sephiroth could see that Tseng was struggling with the battle, firmly being pushed back. The woman – Elfe, if he was not mistaken – had no expression on her face, just a firm determined clench of her jaw. Her katana swung with deadly accuracy, although they were blocked by Tseng's own guns.

It was only a few minutes later when Sephiroth had finished off the last of the goons, including the hacker when Tseng gave out an involuntary cry.

Almost immediately, Sephiroth spun around and ran towards the leader. Tseng, from what he could see, was clutching his leg, a bloody katana hung from Elfe's hands.

While Sephiroth and Tseng were never close friends, he still felt a modicum of friendship with the Turk. Plus, the man was part of the company, which means that the silver-haired man was obligated to help the other man.

With these reasons in mind, Sephiroth stepped forward, blocking the sword that would have killed the other man. Elfe, red hair hanging into her eyes, expressed bland surprise at him helping the Turk, as if she expected the First to actually leave a fellow employee to die.

Whilst blocking the Turk from further harm, Sephiroth discreetly nudged him with his foot, signalling him to escape.

The woman was a formidable opponent; fast deadly slashes which were executed with mathematical precision, not letting up even it was clear that it took no effort for Sephiroth to block of evade her strike.

It was a careless mistake that turned the tide of the fight. While the SOLDIER had the upper hand, what with his strength and faster speed, he had underestimated his opponent. He _had_ fought her before, at the reactor, but they didn't get a chance to exchange more than a few blows before abruptly, she left the fight after a few parting words that made him question his loyalty to Shinra.

Now, this was a full-blown fight and from what he could remember, Elfe was never this fast, nor as strong. Her skills were top notch, one of the reasons why she was able to keep up with the Demon of Wutai in the previous battle, but eventually Sephiroth would've gained the advantage and she would have lost.

Currently, it seemed as if they were evenly matched, with neither budging one step. As it was, Sephiroth forgot to check that he did, indeed, get rid of all of AVALANCHE's underlings.

It took all his concentration to fight Elfe, and defend Tseng's escape – the Turk could only hobble at a slow pace towards the elevators, considering his leg.

He was so distracted that, for one moment, one of the men he had assumed dead snuck up on his blind spot. And while Sephiroth had superb reflexes that bested even the best of warriors, one moment was all it took to stab a knife the man had concealed on his person into the silver-haired man's ribs, tearing through leather, flesh and muscle.

Green eyes widened as he stared at the weapon protruding out of his side, and barely had the conscious mind to block the incoming katana that was aimed at his head. The Mako, for some reason, had not started the healing process, leaving the wound still bleeding profusely.

A gunshot rang out from behind him, and when he glanced back, he saw Tseng, sitting with one foot pressed onto the ground and a gun raised at his assailant. The underling beside him dropped, even as Sephiroth nodded in gratitude.

Elfe had, of course, seen what had occurred, maybe even ordered it, and pressed her advantage. Sephiroth gritted his teeth, eyes narrowed, as he fended off the wave of dizziness that threatened to consume him.

Blood was rapidly pooling onto the ground, red against the stark white tiles of the floor. Elfe continued her assault, ignoring the fact that the fight was no longer fair.

Summoning strength he didn't know, Sephiroth had pushed the leader in to the wall, buying a few precious seconds. Black spots were appearing in his vision, and he didn't think he could concentrate enough to actually activate a material without it backfiring and making the situation worse than it was.

Genesis, on the other hand, could probably wrongly activate a material and still have it work. The First conceded that in terms of materia, Genesis was, hands down, the best at that field.

An idea formed in his head.

"Tseng!" He barked, fumbling for his pocket. While his tone was quite rude, currently, he couldn't care less.

"Yes?" Tseng replied, a little disconcerted at being addressed to suddenly.

Sephiroth finally grabbed at the materia he needed, passing the red ball into the man's hands. He knew that the blond hated – or not, considering the previous time they'd met – him, but currently, he needed help, and the summon was his best bet.

"Summon him, now." Sephiroth commanded. And while Tseng had wanted to protest, – the SOLDIER could see it on his face – the hurry-the-fuck-up-and-follow-my-order-if-you-don't-want-to-die tone in his voice made the Turk decide against it.

The red ball glowed, just as AVALANCHE's leader finally got up and charged at him.

_Time_, Sephiroth thought, _I need to buy time._

Elfe clashed with Masamune with all the force of a freight train, pushing the man back a few steps. His arms trembling, - and this was strange, Sephiroth couldn't remember a time where he trembled in a battle – from the force of the hit. Glancing back, he could see the Turk with the summon material, the glow of the ball growing with each passing second.

"Tseng," Sephiroth barked, again, "how long more?"

He couldn't hold her back forever.

"Thirty more seconds," Tseng intoned, voice a perfect monotone except for the slight tremble that belied his exhaustion. Both of them knew that in battle, thirty seconds was a lot, enough time to change the tides in battle or to be completely decimated.

Elfe looked past him and saw the red ball, immediately disengaging with her current opponent and running towards the other man. Sephiroth, almost as quick, chased after her, Masamune swinging forward to block her way. A hiss escaped his lips as his wound was jostled.

"Get out of my way," she said, eyes narrowed in anger.

Sephiroth smirked, breathing laboured, as he brandished his weapon before him.

_Over my dead body_ was silently conveyed.

The First, delirious from blood loss, nearly laughed at the furrow in her eyebrows – he didn't know why it was humorous, just that it was.

Just as they were getting ready for another confrontation, a blinding red flash erupted behind him, and both, shocked, glanced at the source.

_Finally,_ Sephiroth thought with some relief, though none was shown on his face, when the light dissipated to show a familiar blond.


	5. Chapter 5

Disclaimer: I don't own

A/N: I finished this at 2am in the morning so excuse the mistakes and horrible writing. I blame the storyline. (It doesn't exist, that's why) Anyhoo, exams are coming, so I probably won't be able to update for a while, plus, I don't actually have a detailed plot for this story, so like yeah. Maybe I should make one… Idea contribution would be much appreciated!

Anyways, enjoy~

Summon C05:

Confusing, Cloud thought, as he was suddenly whisked away from his now-home once again. Confusing, and dizzy, he decided.

The light that followed him there faded away to nothingness, and Cloud nearly let out a sigh in relief. The feminine figure before him wasn't what he expected to see. The brunette however, didn't waste a second, and charged.

_She seems familiar_, Cloud thought as he parried her blows effortlessly. Short brunette hair, white scarf, and a green shirt, he'd seen her picture before, hung somewhere in AVALANCHE's ex-base. She had been the leader before Barret, rumoured to have been on par with Sephiroth, Elfe.

The furrow in between Elfe's eyebrows gave away her discomfort at switching to a much stronger opponent, but she didn't back down, and the blond could give her credit for that. The aura that he could sense was also quite odd, and the blond wanted to prolong the fight so as to figure it out.

Elfe, from what Cloud could remember, had been a really strong fighter, and she was enhanced – by what, he couldn't recall – but that made her on par with Sephiroth. She was also the daughter of the Turk Veld. The dead-but-not-dead daughter that Veld thought had died some years back. And now that she was here, if she met Veld…

It would be explosive to say the least.

The pain from a nick on his cheek brought him out of his musings and the blond concentrated back on the fight. _There's no use dwelling on things that are out of your control. Like Aerith's death…_

She was a strong opponent, and definitely deserved her title as Sephiroth's equal, but he was _stronger_ than the silver-haired man, not by much, but enough to count.

It was going slow, but steadily, Elfe was being pushed back, and she knew it.

Somewhere behind him, the blond sensed Sephiroth – how he didn't know, but he just _did_ – slump onto the ground, body a limp mess.

Tseng had yelled out in alarm when he saw his kind-of-friend-but-not fall unconscious, Masamune falling from his limp fingers.

Cloud ignored the both of them, fully concentrating on the battle.

Side-step, parries, dodge, slice, stab, duck and roll

It was a continuous cycle. Cloud decided that fighting was better than sitting alone (sometimes Aerith and Zack came, but it was still lonely) and having nothing to do.

A missed slice had the blond cutting through the edge the glove on her hand, and the black material fell apart and onto the floor.

However, Cloud paid the glove no mind, choosing instead to stare at the materia embedded on the back of her hand. It was glowing faintly, and only a second after the glove fell off – Elfe half in shock – did she abruptly cover her hand and leapt backwards, ignoring the slightly horrified look he was giving her.

She glared at him, hand scrambling through her pockets for a spare glove, but she came up empty. Now it made sense why she felt so _off_. The materia in her hand had been the one disrupting her aura.

A loud horn cut through the room, dispersing the gathering tension in a second.

Her eyes narrowed at him, and Cloud steadied himself. He had been too preoccupied with the mystery that he forgot that she was the enemy.

"It seems like we'll have to continue this another time. Until then," she said, and before anyone could even move – yes, even the mako-enhanced – she had broken the glass effortlessly (it was bullet-proof!) and jumped out of the window down fifty-five stories.

Her cloaked flapped once, and was gone. The blond had immediately, once he'd gained his wits back, rushed over to what remained of the bullet-proofed window and glanced around for the woman. She was nowhere in sight.

A gloved hand slammed down onto the pane in frustration. He didn't have anything against her, but the materia had been a summon materia, and it was slowly killing her.

Veld wouldn't be too happy with that.

Just as Cloud was about to turn around and help – however reluctant he was, Sephiroth _was_ the one who had got him out of his boredom, and this was just thanks for that (Cloud _did_ _not_ in any way appreciate _any_ insinuations about his relationship with his once enemy thank you very much) – he felt a presence arrive, and a youthful black-haired man barged through the doors to the fifty-fifth level.

"Seph! You alright? I heard you got stabbed!"

Cloud didn't know how the hell Zack knew (he suspected Kunsel, that Turk in SOLDIER clothing), but he didn't care. The blond didn't know two shits about first aid (the wounded were usually taken care of by Tifa and Aerith when she had been alive), and the amount of blood pooling around Sephiroth was worryingly large.

It was quite strange to see Zack, usually cheerful, grow solemn as he worked on one of his best friends. As the teen took out a Cure materia (it wasn't even mastered, Cloud thought in slight disbelief) and started to cast Cure repeatedly, the blond could've smacked himself in the face. He forgot about his own materia!

Once the solution to this situation became clear, the blond rifled through his pockets and finally took out a mastered Cure, and casted the strongest healing spell he could. Almost at once, the flesh started to knit back at a much faster pace than before, and eventually, Sephiroth groaned in pain.

The wounds had all been healed already, and the silver-haired man had regained consciousness. Just as the man was about to question the summon's sudden bout of kindness, a red blur barged through the door, Angeal following at a much more sedate pace.

"Sephiroth!"

The silver-haired man groaned, and surprisingly, Cloud felt an amused smirk quirk his lips.

"I can't believe you had the nerve to get injured! By some low-life cretin no less!"

The blond couldn't hide the full-blown grin that broke across his face afterwards. Not even Sephiroth's infamous death glare – which he had seen many times – affected it at all.


	6. Chapter 6

A/N: Do people even read this? Meh. Anyways, I wanted to apologise for the more than half-year wait for this chapter! I'm so sorry. I can't promise that it won't happen again, considering that my studies are going really badly (I failed like 3 of five of my subjects and those I passed aren't looking too good either), so I need to focus on them first. I try not to take so long for the next chapter but no promises. Plus, I have very important end-of-years to do that are going to decide which University and course I can take. So yeah. ^^" Sorry guys!

EDIT: Made some mistakes regarding Cloud's name and stuff. Edited it out. Thanks to all the reviewers who pointed it out!^^

EDIT #2: Something went wrong with the formatting. Sorry 'bout that guys. Thanks to all those reviewers who informed me about it!

Summon C06:

_Previously:_

_"Sephiroth!"_

_The silver-haired man groaned, and surprisingly, Cloud felt an amused smirk quirk his lips._

_"I can't believe you had the nerve to get injured! By some low-life cretin no less!"_

_The blond couldn't hide the full-blown grin that broke across his face afterwards. Not even Sephiroth's infamous death glare – which he had seen many times – affected it at all._

-0-

Now:

Genesis had fussed over Sephiroth for a few minutes before turning towards the blond, eyes unusually serious. "Thank you for saving him."

Cloud blinked, a bit surprised as the Genesis he knew wasn't the kind of person to thank someone so freely. It was a startling contrast. He lifted a hand awkwardly and rubbed the back of his head, cerulean eyes cast downwards (He was _not_ embarrassed thank you very much!). "Erm… No problem I guess?"

The blond couldn't help a wince when it came out more of a question than an answer. The redhead smirked, before rising from his squatting position gracefully and surveyed the area. Angeal had hung back for the moment, blue eyes assessing the blond shrewdly. While the First was the nicest bloke among the three, he was also the best at sensing a person's intentions, and although Cloud hadn't any bad intentions per se, there was just something about the other man that rubbed him the wrong way. Maybe it was the way he walked, predator-like, that gave of the feeling, if possible, that he was a lot more dangerous than an angry Sephiroth.

Blue eyes caught his suddenly, and Angeal felt trapped, and for the first time in a long, long while, the raven-haired First could feel a hint of fear that was slowly growing as those eyes seemed to look right through him and into his soul. He quickly twisted his head to the side, breaking eye contact, even as Zack – who had finally stood up from where he had been kneeling (mother-henning) Sephiroth within an inch of the silver-haired man's life – walked over to his side, glowing blue eyes narrowed in concern.

"Hey Angeal, you alright there?" Zack asked, a gloved hand reaching for his shoulder, but Angeal didn't notice, just continued to stare into his student's eyes. Like a puzzle piece had just snapped into place, Angeal immediately whirled around to face Cloud again (the blond and Sephiroth were having a staring contest with Genesis snickering at the side he noticed absently), and, more from shock than anything else, had immediately shouted out, "You're a SOLDIER!"

The room immediately hushed, even Tseng who had been making a call while leaning against the doorway, had fallen silent.

Cloud tensed.

"_What_?"

Genesis immediately flocked towards the blond swordsman, grabbing his chin and lifting it up, surprisingly gentle.

"Mako eyes!" The redhead exclaimed, red gloved hands grabbing the sides of Cloud's face as if he couldn't believe it himself.

Giving an annoyed huff, the blond wrenched himself from the redhead's grip and massaged his cheeks.

Even Sephiroth had abandoned his quest to outstare Cloud to stalk over to the blond's side to examine his eyes as well.

"Wait, you mean you guys didn't notice?"

Unexpectedly, the one who had spoken was the one and only Zack Fair. A red whirlwind was immediately at his side, grabbing his arms and giving him a full body shake as Genesis growled out, "You noticed that and didn't even deem it important enough to tell the rest of us?"

"I thought you guys noticed it already! It's not like it was hidden or anything!" Zack cried out at his defence.

The redhead gritted his teeth, but couldn't refute the statement. The fact that the both of them (himself and Sephiroth) had overlooked such a small but important detail spoke volumes of they complete and utter incompetence, a fact that had never been applied to either of them until today. This was humiliating. Though, in both their defences, they had been too distracted by the huge ass sword and admittedly wicked fighting techniques to pay attention to the blond's eyes in _that_ much detail.

Genesis had unconsciously chalked up the brightness of his eyes as something that the blond had because he was a summon but on closer inspection, like the one he'd just done, he could see the green tinge that was evident in every SOLDIER's eyes, though the blond's was a lot more obvious, around the same as his own eyes if he were to be honest. It was frightening, the fact that _he_ had almost the same or had the same Mako level as a First Class SOLDIER. An unbidden though sneaked into his mind:

_What if the blond had been _made_ into a Summon? What if… he was actually once a human? _

Genesis couldn't help the shiver that wracked his body, for he only knew of one scientist that had both the ability and skill to do this: Hojo.

_Sephiroth might be next._

-0-

The cleaning up after the fight was done quite quickly, and soon, it seemed like AVALANCHE never attacked. Sephiroth, after having been completely healed by Cloud (who, surprisingly, still hasn't vanished), had immediately after clean up (wherein all of them were forced to help) made a beeline for his rooms and locked himself in there for the rest of the day. Genesis, Angeal, Zack and Cloud had retired to Genesis' and Angeal's shared rooms for some small talk and to find out _why_ Cloud hasn't disappeared yet considering that the MP drain on Tseng would've reached danger level by now.

It was late when they got there, after the cleaning up and what not, and all four of them were tired. They had all collapse of the nearest surface (except for Genesis who had gracefully flopped – if that was even possible – onto _his_ soft sofa chair), and left out simultaneous groans of relief, the redhead included. Angeal, ever the perfect host, had volunteered to get the drinks, and trudged to the kitchen to grab a few cups of water.

Snatching the opportunity with Angeal gone, Genesis immediately started to interrogate the blond, a Cheshire-smirk pasted on his face.

"So," he practically purred (and even Cloud knew that _that_ was dangerous territory), "tell me, where _did_ you get your enhancements from?"

The undertone of steel that was hidden beneath the seemingly playful tone spoke volumes of how Cloud had _better hand over all your secrets now before I eviscerate you._

The blond was a very private person, and hated, _loathed,_ people who would try to force him to reveal _anything_ personal, and his five years spent under Hojo's scalpel was filed under _never to be mentioned._

"…Somewhere," the blond said at last.

A red eyebrow ticked, even as Genesis plastered that utterly fake smile on his face.

"I see," the redhead replied. "Then would you care to enlighten me on how a SOLDIER – ranked First Class too oh my – became a summon? Or were you just like this," and here he waved a dismissive hand over the blond's body, "from the very beginning?"

Cloud grimaced. He wasn't looking forward to the rest of the evening. Where in Gaia's name was Angeal when he needed him!

At the doorway, hidden within the shadows, Angeal watched the proceedings. Zack was already snoring at his seat.


	7. Chapter 7

A/N: Sorry for the long wait guys. Even though I told some I would update in early or mid-December, things in RL kept making me push things back (and I was lazy period), but at least I'm updating things now~ Anyways thanks for all the reviews, favourite and follows. I may not reply to your review but that does not mean I didn't read them. Hope you guys enjoy this chapter!

Oh and Happy New Year guys! Hope y'all have a wonderful year ahead!^^

Summon C07:

Feeling uncomfortable, Cloud just shifted in his seat, but keeping silent. He could feel the mana link between him and Tseng thinning, signalling that he was almost out of mana to remain in this world. Thanking Gaia for that, he faced Genesis and was about to apologise and then disappear when a red-gloved hand grabbed his forearm and a warm rushing sensation filled his body, giving him energy. The link then suddenly transferred to Genesis.

The redhead smirked at him. "I'm not letting you go that easily."

Cloud widened his eyes; he never thought this was possible but considering the person before him, a materia expert, Genesis would be the only person capable enough to pull it off.

Grudgingly, the blond sat back down, a petulant expression on his face that made him seem almost like a child. His tense shoulders didn't relax until a particularly loud snore from Zack made its sudden appearance (in sound of course).

With a sigh, Cloud rests his arms against his knees before acquiescing with a short sharp nod of his head.

"What do you want to know?"

Genesis leaned forward in interest and even Angeal took a few paces into the room from his silent vigil at the door.

"How about we start with a name, Blondie," Genesis stated with a huff, annoyed at having to addressed the aforementioned man as him, or the summon, or the blond for the past few times they've met.

"…Cloud Strife."

Both Genesis and Angeal looked suspicious.

"Is that your… real name?" Angeal asked, doubt colouring his words as he took a few more steps into the living room, standing behind his sleeping student. Beside Zack, Genesis also waited for answers.

"…Yes. My mother had a love of clouds for some reason," Cloud explained briefly, leaving out the fact that it was a tradition in the Strife family to be named after an element of the sky of some sort. His mother for example was named Rain.

While they still looked a bit unconvinced, most of the doubt had faded from their faces, leaving mostly curiosity and apprehension. It was a strange situation. In the short amount of time Cloud had spent thinking about how his secret would come out, ninety-nine percent of the time, he envisioned Sephiroth to be here considering that the Demon of Wutai was the one whom had the most involvement in his life barring Zack (and even that was debatable). Never in any of all his worries about his big reveal was Sephiroth absent and Zack asleep with only the two remaining Firsts to dig up the past. Cloud was really tempted to clam up and just brood as he'd done a lot in the future but that wouldn't do anything except make him feel better (he didn't like having to reveal anything to anyone. Ever).

Furthermore Genesis and Angeal may be of help to save this planet, even if the former was set to betray ShinRa and the latter forcing Zack to kill him. They may not make the best of allies, but they were the best at the moment, while making sure Sephiroth never found out anything. Knowledge of his birth was what sparked the burning of NIbelheim in the past, and Cloud would never take that chance again. Additionally, this may be Cloud's own twisted version of revenge against the man who had (not yet) committed all those crimes against the world. Let it not be said the Cloud was a nice person. He may forgive, but he never forgets.

But the thing about Genesis and Angeal is that their current selves are too loyal to the friendship they harbour with Sephiroth and any important information will, inevitably, fall into the man's hands. So,

"I was human. Hojo experimented on me for five years," it was not hard to inject the sense of loathing and loss here (even after so many years, the memories were still so vivd), " to find out if by making humans into Summons, he could increase the overall power of the person since Summons are so powerful. However out of the thirteen people that he experimented on, I was the only survivor. The thing was I was not up to par with what he wanted so he disposed of me."

Cloud closed his eyes in pained remembrance. While the story wasn't really true, it held enough of what had happened to inspire a sense of _angerlosssorrow _that had dogged his footsteps since he'd woken with the false memories in his head just outside of Midgar.

A rough hand fell upon his shoulder in comfort. Cloud slanted his gaze upwards, catching dark hair at the edge of his eyes. Angeal gave a sympathetic smile that caused the blond's stomach to churn in guilt. He didn't really want to lie to Angeal...

"So he just let you go? Just like that? I find that hard to believe," the redhead said as he leaned back into the sofa chair.

"He didn't of course," Cloud answered eyes now down to his palms as he avoided looking at the room's occupants. Zack's snores were a comfort and something the Cloud revelled in as he never had the opportunity to do so. Above the blond head, Angeal was making 'EMERGENCY ABORT MISSION' in SOLDIER hand signs at his fellow First Class but Genesis just ignored him. What the smaller man wanted was answers and answers he would get.

It took the blond a moment to start formulating the answers in order to incorporate it into his own story.

"A fellow inmate – my best friend really – got us both out of there; stole the materia that held me and some weapons and took off. Made sure to summon me at least once a day to take care of my then-comatose body (the reason why Hojo rejected me) and escaped. That was about five years ago. Some Shinra soldiers caught up and killed him but they didn't find me because Z-my friend had already hidden me in the outskirts of Midgar where he was headed to see his girlfriend." Cloud shrugged. "That's how I got out."

His looked up and surveyed the room, as if daring anyone to question his story. But it seemed like that was for nothing as he could already feel the thin thread that connected him and Genesis growing thinner, signalling the redhead's depleting mana. Well, the fact that he could keep the blond here for – Cloud glanced at the clock – over an hour without seeming to break a sweat was no mean feat especially considering that Cloud costed more MP than most summons.

Already, with his sensitive hearing, Cloud could hear the slightly laboured breathing of the redhead and, judging by Angeal's concerned glance, he could too. Genesis was stubborn, however, and Cloud could see that the other man would hold up for as long as he needed to get all the answers he wanted. With a sigh, Cloud reached for the fraying connection and gave it a strong tug, pulling it apart.

With an almost inaudible pop, the blond was gone. It all happened too fast for either man to react and a second later, Genesis let out a squawk of anger, eyes blazing as he almost leapt across the coffee table to the previously occupied seat.

Angrily, the redhead stormed from the room and shortly later, Angeal heard the door slam.

About a second after that, once the First concluded that no one was around, he gestured towards his student and asked, "So did his story ring any bells Zack?"

The blue eyes snapped open as the 'sleeping' teen jerked up. "Don't scare me like that 'Geal! And I didn't pretend to be asleep on purpose! It's just, I woke up about halfway through his story and it seemed rude if I just interrupt and –"

Angeal cut his student of with a slight gesture of his hand. "I get it Zack. Now, answer the question. Don't think I didn't see you move uncomfortably when that Cloud was telling his story."

Zack looked down, eyes becoming less focussed as he struggled to put together what he felt when the blonde man told his story.

"I don't know Angeal. It just seemed so familiar, like I've dreamt it before… Like a strong sense of déjà vu… And he, Cloud, I just seemed to recognise him, like a long lost brother I've never met before. What's going on Angeal? What's happening to me?" Zack asked, a hint of panic beneath his words.


End file.
